Experts Meeting to Address Obstetric Fistula in Rwanda

KIGALI, RWANDA—Leading experts and physicians working in the reproductive and maternal health field will convene in Kigali December 7–8, 2009, to identify challenges and solutions to a pressing and preventable health concern in Rwanda—obstetric fistula. Hosted by the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Rwanda Medical Association and the U.S. Agency for International Development-supported Fistula Care Project (managed by EngenderHealth), the meeting will engage policymakers, health officials, medical staff, and community leaders to set achievable goals for preventing fistula and improving Rwandan women’s health.

Fistula affects an estimated 2–4 million women globally, including in Rwanda. It is a devastating gynecological injury usually caused by prolonged labor without medical intervention or cesarean section. As a result, women with fistula have chronic leakage of urine and/or feces. In most cases, fistula can be repaired through surgery, and it is almost always preventable—with timely, high-quality obstetric care as well as family planning.

At the meeting, national and international experts will strategize on how to best to integrate family planning with maternal health services to prevent fistula and improve the health and lives of Rwandan women. Leading physicians will be available to offer their expertise and comment on the issues, including:

• Dr. Isaiah Ndong, Vice President for Programs, EngenderHealth
• Dr. Joseph Ruminjo, Clinical Director of Fistula Care, EngenderHealth
• Dr. Theobald Hategekimana, Director, University Central Hospital of Kigali
• Dr Serigne Magueye Gueye, Fistula Master Trainer, Cheikh Anta Diop University/Grand Yoff General Hospital, Senegal

The meeting will be held at the Serena Hotel in Kigali. Members of the media are invited to attend the opening ceremony on December 7 and the morning session on December 8. Please contact Kellen Kebikomi by telephone at 250-25257-0912 or by email at kkebikomi@engenderhealth.org to confirm your attendance.

About Fistula Care
The Fistula Care project is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by USAID and managed by EngenderHealth. The project works to address the enormous backlog of women awaiting life-altering fistula repair, ensuring they receive timely and quality care from trained providers. At the same time, we work to remove barriers to emergency obstetric care that lead to fistula in the first place, so that women in labor get to the right place with the right services at the right time. The project is supporting a network of facilities offering a continuum of services, from emergency obstetric care, referrals, and family planning, to complex fistula repairs and advanced surgical training. Visit www.fistulacare.org for more information or contact us at: fistulacare@engenderhealth.org.

About EngenderHealth
EngenderHealth is a leading international reproductive health organization working to improve the quality of health care in the world’s poorest communities. EngenderHealth empowers people to make informed choices about contraception, trains health providers to make motherhood safer, promotes gender equity, enhances the quality of HIV and AIDS services, and advocates for positive policy change. The nonprofit organization works in partnership with governments, institutions, communities, and health care professionals in more than 20 countries around the world. For more than 65 years, EngenderHealth has reached more than 100 million people to help them realize a better life. For more information, visit www.engenderhealth.org.

(From the EngenderHealth press release)

New Series of HIV and AIDS Program Briefs

This World AIDS Day, EngenderHealth announces a new series of HIV and AIDS program briefs highlighting promising practices and lessons learned from our work. The briefs explore hallmarks of our programs, including strengthening health systems, developing human resources, engaging communities, and advocating for supportive policies. In nine countries, EngenderHealth partners with local clinics and community-based organizations to provide comprehensive HIV and AIDS prevention, care, and treatment services.

The first in the series is a set of five briefs on the AIDS, Population, and Health Integrated Assistance (APHIA II) Nyanza Project, which is based in Nyanza, Kenya. APHIA II is a holistic project to improve and expand HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support services, along with integrated reproductive health, maternal health, family planning, malaria, tuberculosis, and child health services.

The briefs in this series are:

• Implementation Strategy of the APHIA II Nyanza Project (PDF, 416KB)
  
• Improving Health Facility–Based Services in Nyanza Province, Kenya: The APHIA II Nyanza Project (PDF, 372KB)
• Implementing a Community Strategy within the APHIA II Nyanza Project (PDF, 328KB)
• Community-Based Care and Support within the APHIA II Nyanza Project (PDF, 380KB)
• Strengthening the Kenya Health Management Information System (HMIS) for Monitoring and Evaluation of the APHIA II Nyanza Project (PDF, 372KB)

APHIA II Nyanza is supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development and is managed by EngenderHealth, in collaboration with Kenya’s Ministry of Health. Other partners include: the Academy for Educational Development (AED), the Christian Health Association of Kenya, Inter Diocesan Christian Community Services, and PATH.

For more information about the APHIA II Nyanza Project and EngenderHealth’s HIV and AIDS programs, please visit www.engenderhealth.org/aphia or contact Sharone Beatty at: sbeatty@engenderhealth.org.

Ten Thousand Women with Fistula Receive Life-Changing Surgery

Dear colleagues and friends,

EngenderHealth and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) today celebrate a milestone in global maternal health: A total of 10,000 women have received fistula repair surgery with U.S. support since 2005. Fistula, a devastating childbirth injury affecting millions of women in developing countries, can be surgically repaired up to 90% of the time, but most of those with the condition lack access to a skilled surgeon or health center, making treatment out of reach.

Four years ago, USAID launched a global effort to both treat and prevent fistula. To date, through initiatives such as the EngenderHealth-led Fistula Care Project, and in collaboration with local governments, regional health care organizations, and faith-based organizations, medical teams in 12 countries and 25 health facilities across Africa and Asia have been trained and equipped to provide surgery for fistula.

It is these trained medical professionals, as well as their supporting institutions, whose dedication has made it possible for 10,000 women to regain dignity and hope through fistula repair surgery. We honor the tireless efforts of the surgical teams as we mark this maternal health milestone.

Obstetric fistula is an injury caused by prolonged obstructed labor, when the head of the baby cannot pass safely through the woman's birth canal. The baby often dies as a result, and the woman is left with an abnormal opening in the birth canal and chronic incontinence. If left untreated, fistula can lead to skin ulcerations and infections, kidney disease, social isolation, and even death.

The hopeful part of the story is that in addition to most cases being reparable, fistula is almost entirely preventable. This is why the Fistula Care Project is working to improve access to emergency obstetric care and cesarean section for women who develop complications during delivery. Together with skilled attendance at all births and the availability of voluntary family planning, this could make fistula as rare in the developing world as it is in the industrialized world. The Fistula Care Project is working to engage all levels of society to raise awareness about fistula and its underlying causes, including early pregnancy, poverty, and a lack of education and empowerment for women and girls.

As the largest USAID-supported effort to both treat and prevent fistula, the Fistula Care Project will keep you apprised of our work to transform the lives of thousands more women and girls around the world--work that is possible thanks to your partnership. To learn more, please visit our web site at www.fistulacare.org.



Gratefully yours,

Karen J. Beattie
Project Director
Fistula Care Project





The Fistula Care Project is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by USAID and managed by EngenderHealth. The project works to address the enormous backlog of women awaiting life-altering fistula repair, ensuring that they receive timely and quality care from trained providers. At the same time, it works to remove barriers to emergency obstetric care that lead to fistula in the first place, so that women in labor get to the right place with the right services at the right time. The project is supporting a network of facilities offering a continuum of services, from emergency obstetric care, referrals, and family planning to complex fistula repairs and advanced surgical training. Visit www.fistulacare.org for more information or contact fistulacare@engenderhealth.org.

The American people, through USAID, have provided economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide for nearly 50 years. For more information about USAID and its programs, visit www.usaid.gov.

Fistula Care Launches New Web Site

The Fistula Care Project is pleased to announce the launch of its new web site: www.fistulacare.org. Supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Fistula Care is a global leader in building the capacity of developing countries to address fistula, a devastating vaginal injury that affects an estimated 2 million women and girls.

The Fistula Care web site is a comprehensive resource for anyone interested in or working on issues related to fistula and maternal health. Sharing program insights and technical expertise, the web site offers a host of resources and tools, including:

• Training guides and curricula
• Communications and social mobilization materials
• Journal articles and presentations
• Technical updates and program reports
• Country-specific updates on current activities

The web site also features stories of women whose lives have been transformed by fistula repair. Every day, Fistula Care helps prevent and treat fistula across 11 countries in Africa and Asia. More than 9,600 women received surgical repair between 2005 and 2008 through the support of USAID, the project, and its partners.

Additionally, detailed information about the project’s on-the-ground, country-specific activities is readily available and will be regularly updated.

The Fistula Care Project is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by USAID and managed by EngenderHealth. The project works to address the enormous backlog of women awaiting life-altering fistula repair, ensuring they receive timely and quality care from trained providers. At the same time, we work to remove barriers to emergency obstetric care that lead to fistula in the first place, so that women in labor get to the right place with the right services at the right time. The project is supporting a network of facilities offering a continuum of services, from emergency obstetric care, referrals, and family planning, to complex fistula repairs and advanced surgical training. Visit www.fistulacare.org for more information or contact us at fistulacare@engenderhealth.org.

Fistula Care lance un nouveau site Internet

Le projet Fistula Care (Soins de la Fistule) a l’honneur d’annoncer le lancement de son nouveau site Internet: www.fistulacare.org. Financé par l’Agence américaine du développement internationale (USAID), Fistula Care est un leader mondial dans le domaine du renforcement de capacité des pays en voie du développement en matière de prévention et traitement de la fistule, une blessure vaginale qui ravage à peu près 2 millions de femmes et filles.

Le site Internet Fistula Care est une ressource compréhensive pour ceux qui s’intéressent à la fistule et la santé maternelle. Ce site Internet servira comme une base d’échange d’information technique et programmatique, en offrant des outils et ressources tels que:

• Les guides et curricula de formation
• Les matériels de communication et mobilisation sociale
• Les publications et présentations
• Les rapports programmatiques et techniques
• Les mises-à-jour des activités dans les pays

Le site Internet contient aussi les témoignages de femmes dont les vies ont été transformées par la réparation de leurs fistules. Chaque jour, Fistula Care aide à prévenir et traiter la fistule dans 11 pays en Afrique et en Asie. Plus de 9,600 femmes ont été opérées entre 2005 et 2008 avec le soutien de l’USAID, le projet Fistula Care et ses partenaires.

Les informations détaillées des activités du projet Fistula Care sur le terrain ainsi que les activités spécifiques dans chaque pays sont disponibles et seront régulièrement mises-à- jour sur le site Internet.

NB : Actuellement le site Internet n’est pas complètement traduit en français. Cependant certains documents sont disponibles en français, par exemple les outils de formation et de prestation de services, et aussi toutes les présentations de la réunion des partenaires qui a eu lieu à Accra, Ghana en avril 2008.

Le projet Fistula Care est un agrément de coopération financé par l’USAID et géré par EngenderHealth. Le projet œuvre à pallier à une liste d’attente énorme de femmes qui ont besoin de la réparation vitale et transformante de fistule en assurant qu’elles reçoivent le soins de haute qualité à temps et par les agents de santé bien formés. En même temps, nous œuvrons à enlever les barrières aux soins obstétricales d’urgence qui causent la fistule en premier lieu, afin que les femmes, en période d’accouchement, arrivent à la meilleure place et reçoivent les meilleurs services au meilleur moment. Le projet soutient un réseau de structures offrant une gamme de services partant de soins obstétricaux d’urgence, la référence et la planification familiale à la prise en charge de cas de fistule compliquées et la formation avancée de chirurgiens. Pour plus d’information, veuillez visiter le site Internet www.fistulacare.org ou nous contacter à fistulacare@engenderhealth.org.